Question:
I thought the announcing was pretty brutal particularly on Mickleson’s tee shot on 17 where one announcer said something like "He’s hit a great one – its right at the pin" when another announcer cut in and said "it went in the water". You are right – that announcer was terrible. I am not sure who it was. Maybe someone knows. Not only that but in the playoffs. On the 2nd playoff hole – he hit a 3-wood and the announced said – he hit it perfect! And it went right into the trap. What a dufus.
I’m pretty sure the announcer was Jim Kelly, and I think the color commentator was Gary Koch. I don’t know who was guilty of the worst offenses, but there were others besides the ones you cite. The funniest of them was: "Mickelson has cut down the length of his swing, and now he’s hitting more fairways in regulation." Cheers! Dave
Response:
There is a principle in journalism called the pyramid, in which the most important fact in the story comes first , and it get broader and less newsworthy as it goes on. The Editor ought to be able to fit the article to whatever available space, and it would always make sense, and have maximum impact. You cut from the bottom up, and whether you print 2 0r 20 paragraphs, it’s still first things first.
Actually, that’s the *inverted* pyramid. So-called because as you get further down you get to the pointy part of the pyramid, representing small details, whereas the broad area at top represents the need to know. A story in pyramid format is in chronological order. Sorry, couldn’t resist, given my area of expertise (see sig). Randy A. Yeip | Michigan State University Michigan Governor John Engler on welfare reform: "My Democratic friends in the house and senate, I urge you to send this message to the President. We have kept our promise to the people of Michigan. Now you keep yours."
Response:
Our coverage – the ESPN feed through TSN (equivalent of ESPN in Canada) covered the playoff and a great one it was. I thought the defining moment fo the tourney was when they were on the par 3 (16th I believe) with the huge crowd that roared when Mickleson put it a couple of feet from the pin. Leonard stepped back from his tee shot and hit into trouble taking a bogey to Mick’s birdie for a two stroke swing. I thought the announcing was pretty brutal particularly on Mickleson’s tee shot on 17 where one announcer said something like "He’s hit a great one – its right at the pin" when another announcer cut in and said "it went in the water". Robbie
Response:
Our coverage – the ESPN feed through TSN (equivalent of ESPN in Canada) covered the playoff and a great one it was. I thought the defining moment fo the tourney was when they were on the par 3 (16th I believe) with the huge crowd that roared when Mickleson put it a couple of feet from the pin. Leonard stepped back from his tee shot and hit into trouble taking a bogey to Mick’s birdie for a two stroke swing. I thought the announcing was pretty brutal particularly on Mickleson’s tee shot on 17 where one announcer said something like "He’s hit a great one – its right at the pin" when another announcer cut in and said "it went in the water". Robbie
Hey Robbie – You are right – that announcer was terrible. I am not sure who it was. Maybe someone knows. Not only that but in the playoffs. On the 2nd playoff hole – he hit a 3-wood and the announced said – he hit it perfect! And it went right into the trap. What a dufus. Joe Golfer
Response:
I thought that the Phoenix Open was one of the best tournaments I had seen in a long time, and it was covered right up to the end, on the channel I was watching up here in Toronto, Canada. I don’t know what the policy was in this reguard, but it may be local rather than National ESPN’s decision. There is a principle in journalism called the pyramid, in which the most important fact in the story comes first , and it get broader and less newsworthy as it goes on. The Editor ought to be able to fit the article to whatever available space, and it would always make sense, and have maximum impact. You cut from the bottom up, and whether you print 2 0r 20 paragraphs, it’s still first things first. In this reguard normal golf coverage is a disaster. They give blow by blow of four days coverage right up to the ultimate moment, only to have them summarize, or cut the play-off! Thmas Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead. Am I the only one who percieves a bias against golf at ESPN? How many times have they cut away to go to SportsCenter or NFL Primetime instead of staying on for a playoff? Meanwhile, we have been treated to many an exciting final minute of another
Southwest Conference football blowout while awaiting the start of coverage. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Sorry, but I had to vent. If anyone’s interested, I’ve attached a letter I wrote to someone (?) on ESPN SportsZone. Doubt I’ll get a reply, but maybe if a bunch of us write something might happen. How about a r.s.g petition? Robert Faub Dear ESPN: I am a long time ESPN fan. Being a golf nut I am always glad to see your increasing coverage of all the tours. But one thing has always bothered me about your coverage, and today I was bugged enough to write. Why is it that you will cover a basketball game or football game that goes into OT or a baseball game or auto race that runs late, but if a golf tournament goes into a playoff you won’t stay with it until it is over? Considering that many of us watched from beginning to end of your four round coverage this week, it was absolutely maddening that the exciting fourth round of the Phoenix Open (and an apparently exciting playoff) was taken off the air in lieu of SportsCenter. Why do you do this? I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to not be able to watch the end of something I’ve been following for four days. Add to this the many times I have turned on the tube to watch the beginning of scheduled golf coverage only to find the end of a college football or basketball game, and I feel like the golf fans among us are being treated like second-class citizens. I and the many other golf fans out here would appreciate it if you would reconsider this bias against golf. It would seem to make more sense to have a consistent policy – either cover everything to the end or cut away from all your programming when the time is up. Obviously, the former makes more sense. What is the reasoning behind your current policy? Sureky your sponsors can’t be happy with this arrangement. Just trying to figure out why I have had to sit through the final, tedious minutes of a college football or basketball blowout and a SportsCenter viewer can’t watch an occasional golf playoff.
Response:
Well thanks everybody for filling me in on the details of the playoff. The reason I missed the announcement of how they were going to cover the playoff is because I was taping it and was away from the TV. When I went back later to watch the tape, all I got was the beginning of SportsCenter instead of a playoff. My apologies to ESPN – they seem to have done the right thing yesterday, I just missed out. Guess I’ll have to watch the highlights on "Inside the PGA Tour"!! Bob
Response:
Robert, I’m in Indiana, which is in the Eastern Time Zone (during the winter anyway…we don’t change clocks here). Anyway, while ESPN did cut to SportsCenter, they came back to the golf for each shot, then back to SportsCenter while the players walked to their ball, back to golf, etc… I thought the same as you when they came in with their SportCenter intro, music, etc., but was glad I stuck with it and didn’t miss the great finish. Mike
Response:
Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead.
Well, Indiana is on EST and while they did cut to SportsCenter periodically, they did come back for all the golf action live. No complaints here. Am I the only one who percieves a bias against golf at ESPN?
I will admit the anchors on SportsCenter at the time seemed a bit disgusted that they had to interrupt reporting their precious basketball scores for <gasp! A GOLF PLAYOFF! Same subject – different network: during the Bob Hope on NBC on Sunday, they went to New York for an update (which usually leads me to reach for the remote), and what was the first topic they covered? NO, not basketball, football, or hockey – they mentioned (with actual highlights) John Bland’s win at the Senior TofChampions. Shocked me. Perhaps NBC is starting to realize that golf viewers are worth holding on to. — John W. Griffin
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- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead. Am I the only one who percieves a bias against golf at ESPN? How many times have they cut away to go to SportsCenter or NFL Primetime instead of staying on for a playoff? Meanwhile, we have been treated to many an exciting final minute of another Southwest Conference football blowout while awaiting the start of coverage. Robert Faub Robert, I am on the West Coast (San Diego), and I did get to see the exciting finish of the tournament. I can’t speak for the rest of the
Kentucky saw it too. Dudley Cornman Systems Programmer Academic Computing Services – EKU *** When it comes to boats… *** *** I’d rather have a new boat than a used boat… *** *** I’d rather have a Baja than a Bayliner… *** *** I’d rather have a used Bayliner than no boat at all… ***
Response:
Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead.
Robert, Did you hang in there, or just cut off the TV as soon as you saw SportsCenter? In central NJ (also in the northeast), if you didn’t exhibit a good golfer’s patience, you missed some of the most exciting golf you’ll see all year. (I’m puttin my two cents on the "Awesome tournament" thread.) ESPN inserted SportCenter where they normally would have put commercials, while the golfers were walking to their next shots. This continued throughout the playoff, for almost an hour, alternating SportsCenter with live coverage of EVERY golf shot. Moreover, they didn’t just cut in for the shot, but really covered the playoff. As I said earlier, they just inserted SportsCenter ONLY where normal golf coverage would have cut away for commercial. In a playoff, of course, these breaks are pretty long, because there’s only one party still on the course, so you might have turned off the TV if you didn’t know they were going to come back. (They DID announce their intention to do this. But if you were at the fridge or in the bathroom right after the 18th was finished, you’ have missed it.) I think ESPN sacrificed considerable advertising revenue to do this, and I thank and commend them for it. Cheers! Dave
Response:
: Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead. Am I the only one who percieves a bias against golf at ESPN? How many times have they cut away to go to SportsCenter or NFL Primetime instead of staying on for a playoff? Meanwhile, we have been treated to many an exciting final minute of another Southwest Conference football blowout while awaiting the start of coverage.
Robert, I am on the east coast, and they showed the playoff. They just showed sportscenter "bits" while the players were walking down the fairway, or going to the next hole. To me, this is 100% acceptable, because I didn’t miss any golf, and I also got to see sportscenter. Remember that not everyone likes golf and that ESPN needs to cater to everyone. And in this case they did the best they could jeff
Response:
Hold that pen! If you would have watched and listened closely, you would have noticed that that they didn’t cut away completely. ESPN knows better than that.They only cut away briefly, between shots, to squeeze in some of SportsCenter. They showed *every* shot of the playoff. Since you missed it, here’s how it went: 1st playoff hole – 18th: Both players: Drove perfectly, short iron to within 5 feet, birdie. 2nd playoff hole – 10th: Leonard: Drove perfectly, mid-short iron, 2-putt par. Mickelson: Drove into bunker, mid-short iron into bunker, blasted 20 feet past, sank putt for par. 3rd playoff hole – 17th: Leonard: Drove pin-high right, chipped to with 10 feet, 2-putt par. Mickelson: Drove just short of green, chipped to within 4 feet, birdie to win. — Paul "Try not. DO. Or do not." -Yoda
Response:
Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead. Am I the only one who percieves a bias against golf at ESPN? How many times have they cut away to go to SportsCenter or NFL Primetime instead of staying on for a playoff? Meanwhile, we have been treated to many an exciting final minute of another Southwest Conference football blowout while awaiting the start of coverage. Robert Faub
Robert, I am on the West Coast (San Diego), and I did get to see the exciting finish of the tournament. I can’t speak for the rest of the country, but out here, they sandwiched SportsCenter in during lulls in the golf action (walking down fairways, moving to next tee, etc.). It did make it slightly difficult to follow what was going on, but I got to see EVERY stroke of the playoff. I would have preferred that they hadn’t cut away at all, but the playoff took about 45 minutes. I was just glad I was home, otherwise my VCR would have stopped recording after 2 1/2 hours. I can’t add my name to the petition (over this issue), but it would be nice to see more 1st and 2nd round coverage of the other tournaments (seniors, womens, European, Asian, etc.). After all, they did the finals in the Australian Open (tennis) today. Sure would have been nice to watch the Johnnie Walker also. Sean Dillon
Response:
Well, after watching four days of golf in Phoenix, we were all treated to some fantastic final round golf, and a great finish to the tournament – that is, some of you (presumably on the West Coast) got to see the end of the tournament and the exciting 3 hole playoff. The rest of us in th east got to see SportsCenter instead. Am I the only one who percieves a bias against golf at ESPN? How many times have they cut away to go to SportsCenter or NFL Primetime instead of staying on for a playoff? Meanwhile, we have been treated to many an exciting final minute of another Southwest Conference football blowout while awaiting the start of coverage. Sorry, but I had to vent. If anyone’s interested, I’ve attached a letter I wrote to someone (?) on ESPN SportsZone. Doubt I’ll get a reply, but maybe if a bunch of us write something might happen. How about a r.s.g petition? Robert Faub Dear ESPN: I am a long time ESPN fan. Being a golf nut I am always glad to see your increasing coverage of all the tours. But one thing has always bothered me about your coverage, and today I was bugged enough to write. Why is it that you will cover a basketball game or football game that goes into OT or a baseball game or auto race that runs late, but if a golf tournament goes into a playoff you won’t stay with it until it is over? Considering that many of us watched from beginning to end of your four round coverage this week, it was absolutely maddening that the exciting fourth round of the Phoenix Open (and an apparently exciting playoff) was taken off the air in lieu of SportsCenter. Why do you do this? I can’t tell you how frustrating it is to not be able to watch the end of something I’ve been following for four days. Add to this the many times I have turned on the tube to watch the beginning of scheduled golf coverage only to find the end of a college football or basketball game, and I feel like the golf fans among us are being treated like second-class citizens. I and the many other golf fans out here would appreciate it if you would reconsider this bias against golf. It would seem to make more sense to have a consistent policy – either cover everything to the end or cut away from all your programming when the time is up. Obviously, the former makes more sense. What is the reasoning behind your current policy? Sureky your sponsors can’t be happy with this arrangement. Just trying to figure out why I have had to sit through the final, tedious minutes of a college football or basketball blowout and a SportsCenter viewer can’t watch an occasional golf playoff.